A great deal has been written about what an innovative visual stylist Edgar Wright is, particularly when compared to the relatively static, point-and-shoot nature of so many post-Apatow feature film comedies. In films like “Shaun of the Dead,” “Hot Fuzz” and “The World’s End,” Wright deftly employs the very specific visual language of whatever genre best fits the given story —be it zombie horror, the buddy-cop movie, or Carpenter-esque sci-fi— to spin sharp, smart and affectionate comedies about subjects as varied as codependence, friendship and the dark underbelly of British politesse.
SDCC ’10 Review: ‘Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World’ Is the Video Game Romance We’ve Been Waiting For
My favorite film of Wright’s is his supercharged video game love story “Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World,” though the film took me a few viewings to fully appreciate it. In many ways, it’s the British director’s most visually inventive film (which is saying something), and it’s so breathless with formal vitality that the process of watching it can actually feel exhausting. Yet I find it to be Wright’s most personal and nakedly emotional film: like the picture’s gawky, high-flying protagonist, ‘Scott Pilgrim’ conveys the power of kicking ass in the name of love, and there’s something glorious about the movie’s unabashed sincerity that just plants a big, silly grin on your face.
One of the secrets to the success of ‘Scott Pilgrim’ is the consistency of tone, a high-wire act that Wright manages with grace and ease. In moving the story forward, Wright makes sophisticated use of various transitions: a tactic that’s explored to a more comprehensive degree in this brief but informative video essay titled “Scott Pilgrim: Make Your Transitions Count.” The Nerdwriter takes note of how Wright uses several nifty tricks from his directorial arsenal —including strategic employment of diegetic effects both audio and visual, as well as intensely precise camera movements that clue us into Scott’s foggy state of mind— to tell this story in a cinematic fashion.
Honestly, a lot of this will be old hat to Wright’s die-hard fans, though ‘Scott Pilgrim’ is such a daffy, enjoyable whatsit of a movie that I suspect you could spend days picking it apart and still find some interesting things to talk about. And this video is a nice way to tide us over until Wright’s highly anticipated new film “Baby Driver” opens on March 17, 2017.